Q&A: Is a year-old car seat safe for a newborn?

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"There is nothing so amazing as the development of a child," says Suzanne Dixon, M.D., a behavioral and developmental pediatrician who was one of the founding members of the Pampers Parenting Network. "Every day is a new adventure when you have a child around you. I never get tired of learning from the children who have been a part of my life, professionally and personally."Suzanne Dixon, M.D., M.P.H., was born and raised in Minnesota and graduated from the University of Minnesota, School of Medicine. She did her pediatric training at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and then completed a fellowship in Child Development at Boston's Children's Hospital. Dr. Dixon joined the faculty at the University of California, San Diego, and did patient care, teaching, and research for 20 years. She ran a large newborn service, performed research in early child development, and was involved in many community outreach activities in maternal child health. Throughout her entire professional life she has maintained an interest in cross-cultural activities, living and working in many parts of the world, including Mexico, India, Kenya, Indonesia, and several countries from the former U.S.S.R. Dr. Dixon is the author of numerous research articles, review articles, and textbook chapters in pediatrics, child and family development, and public health. Her textbook, written with Dr. Martin Stein, Encounters With Children: Pediatric Behavior and Development, has become a classic in child health education and is in its fourth edition. She is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, an international journal of high standing in the professional world. She also has served as an associate editor for Infant Mental Health and currently reviews for several major pediatric journals. Dr. Dixon is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and served in national positions in that organization. She is a member of the Society for Pediatric Research, the Society for Research in Child Development, the American Public Health Association, and the Executive Council of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. She serves as consultant to several national and international organizations and has received an award from Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies.Dr. Dixon continues to lecture and consult worldwide on aspects of maternal, child, and family health. She practices behavioral and developmental pediatrics in Montana and works with local advocacy groups on education and women''s health. Dr. Dixon has been married for over 30 years and has three sons. She and her husband travel frequently, are outdoor enthusiasts, and enjoy being amateur anthropologists.

Question

Is a year-old car seat safe for a newborn?

Answer

Great questions, as the gear we use for children is so vital to their safety, and changes in recommendations come quickly. A one-year-old car seat may be fine for your newborn, but there are a few things you need to find out. First, has this car seat been recalled? Find the model number on the car seat and check it against the recalled models on this site. If the seat has no model number to check, I wouldn't be confident that it is safe. Was it in a car accident or does it have visible cracks in the shell or frayed straps? If so, that ol' thing needs to be put out to pasture, not in your car.

Newborns need to be in a car seat designed for their weight and age. If the seat you have is a convertible model, change it back to the newborn configuration and see if everything can be adjusted according the manufacturer's specifications. Finally, install the seat or have it installed according to the manufacturer's directions in your car to see if it works in the middle of the car's backseat, the best position for an infant. See our car seat site article for more information.

The used crib, to be safe, must not have been made before 1985. Its slats should be less than 2 3/8 inch apart, and it should have no headboard cutouts. The mattress should fit tightly in the frame and the bedding should also fit very tightly on that mattress. Don't be tempted to wrap the mattress in any loose plastic and beware of any rips in the mattress. See this site article for more about safe cribs.

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